Pai Men Miyake
| Address: | 188 State Street -200, Portland, ME 04102, USA |
| Phone: | +1 207-541-9204 |
| Site: | miyakerestaurants.com |
| Rating: | 4.4 |
| Working: | 11:30AM–11PM 11:30AM–11PM 11:30AM–11PM 11:30AM–11PM 11:30AM–12AM 11:30AM–12AM 11:30AM–12AM |
Location
Photos 100
Reviews 5
A
A Private User
Pai Men Miyake is one of the most interesting restaurants on the East Coast right now. Weve been eating here since the opening, so heres what I know and think of the place. Youre free to show up any way you like. Its very casual. Youll be greeted informally and, unless the place is busy or heavily reserved, told to sit wherever you would like. The service is, for the most part, casual. Its also encouraging to see mostly the same faces when we come, as the restaurant has kept its best staff. Ask questions, they know the menu and dont expect you to be an expert in their concept. Anyway, food. This isnt traditional Japanese. Its a word I hate - fusion. All food is fusion, but I digress. There are Japanese ingredients and techniques at work here, blended with French and American flavor and style. Ive said it before, this is one of the most interesting places to eat on the entire East Coast right now, and I am not excluding major destinations like NYC and DC in that comparison. Theres creativity, but a certain comfort factor in the food as well. Its odd, like theyre serving exactly what youre craving. Also, I hope you like pork. As far as the menu, its pretty hard to miss. One small plate and one large plate or ramen bowl is generally a good guideline for ordering, and there are stars on each list. For the small plates, its really hard to beat the pork buns - especially the "Sunday Buns" that are generally offered on... wait for it... Sunday. Whether its pork belly or pork shoulder, its good. At dinner, the baby back ribs are just awesome. For the ramen, which is usually an entree for me, its hard to not order the tonkotsu - pork broth with, of course, excellent noodles, a couple slices of pork belly, and a soy egg - possibly the most addictive thing on the menu. The broth itself could be eaten on its own, its seriously good. Listen for specials as well. Ive tried to list some items that are usually on the menu, but I almost always opt for a small plate off of the specials before my customary bowl of tonkotsu ramen. They recently added dessert, which has been pretty good so far, if you still have any room left to try it.
A
A Private User
I just went for lunch today and it was AWFUL. First off, they made everyone stand outside in the cold until 12.13 while the bartender stapled together drink menus (which I never received even though I was seated AT THE BAR) and made sure there was soy sauce on every table. By the time the doors were unlocked over a dozen people were milling around waiting. I work in the restaurant industry (bartender/server) and I understand having a flood of people come in right away is overwhelming, but the bartender handled it horribly. I never received a smile from him (the only smile I got at all in there was from a kitchen worker who creeped behind the bar at some point for a glass of water), barked questions like "what do you want", waited five minutes after taking my order to hand it off to the kitchen, and seemed like he could care less about customer satisfaction. But onto the food. The shumai I ordered ended up being tofu and shrimp that day instead of the listed pork and shrimp. It was mushy, bland, and unappealing. I only ate one of the three that will run you $6. The bartender seemed less then concerned about why I didnt eat them. My pork belly soup was eventually brought to me after sitting in my sight on the kitchen counter for several minutes, and had developed a thick gelatinous layer on top from all the fat cooling off. The first four bites were just nauseating jelly consistancy fat. There were only about four tiny cuts of meat in my soup. The broth was bland and needed mass amounts of chili powder to give it ANY flavor. $15 before tip later I am still hungry and severely displeased with my time there.
JO
john F
Pretty disappointing is how I will sum up our visit here. My wife and I love ramen and udon places and this is the only one in town. We finally got the time to stop in for lunch the other day to try it out. First, waitress was not on her game at all. Our ramen took 40 minutes after ordering, which is completely unacceptable for a noodle spot. We watched as multiple tables were served before us. Only checked on us once, and I had an empty beer for 20 minutes. We saw her stop and talk to her friends at the bar no less then 4 times while completely ignoring us. One of the other waitresses checked on us as many times as she did during our visit..... twice. Now the food. The shrimp gyoza wasnt bad, I have no complaints there. However both my wife and I had problems with our ramen. I think they forgot about us (40 mins) when our ramen came the pork belly in mine were burnt and the soup tasted fatty. My wifes was worse, everything burnt including the cabbage and other veggies. She didnt even make it through half of the meal. I hate writing a bad review but it had to be done. I dont expect the ramen to be as good as it was in Korea (lived there for years, wife is from there) or NY. But after hearing everyone rave about it, it couldnt have been a bigger waste of time. It is unfortunate because the ingredients seemed very fresh, just burt and thrown together. The apps seemed good and unique so that is why it gets 2 stars instead of 1. Maybe I would go back for apps and drinks, but not ramen.
WE
Wes Mills
Food - delicious Service - suspect I come in on a Monday night surprised at how busy the restaurant was. Ive heard great things and my wife and I love good ramen so we were hungry and excited. We arrived and were told it would be about a 10 minute wait for the bar. No problem. There was a 4 top clearing out at the front (2 - 2 tops pushed together) and I asked to be seated there. The host said it was for 4. I watched 2 other groups of 2 arrive and told it would be a 25 minute wait. They left. That 4 top was empty for almost 15 minutes while groups of 2 were turned away. It felt like we as customers were a bit of a nuisance to the food atmosphere that was being built (as if it would be preferable to not have customers at all). Anyway we were sat at the bar and the waiter was kind and diligent. The Brussel Sprouts were good and the ramen was great (Paitan & Beef Kimchi). Beer selection was very good as well. I guess my only qualm was that neither of us felt welcome but this is a hipster food industry vibe Ive experienced in both newer Denver restaurants and San Fran. Id definitely come back for the food but I hope the overall experience is a better one next time.
CH
Christopher Pagli
Ive never had a bad meal here. My go to is the tuna sushi roll which is the best in Portland. The tuna is so tender and beautiful. I love the fact that they put almond slivers on the top, its a nice crunchy accompaniment. The Shojin ramen is amazing. From the broth to the pickled ginger it makes me smile every time. I read another review that mentioned the ginger being a mis-step. That person obviously doesnt understand depth of flavor and the dimension of flavor the ginger brings to the dish. It adds a unique freshness and bit of heat. The staff is on point, always friendly, and attentive. Go often.
